Topic: Practicallity of flips and all that crap

[aarontp]

Watching videos about Parkour, when the people are high up, instead of just jumping and excecuting a roll, they'll do crazy crap like a backflip or a frontflip (which isn't really crazy...just stupid), and I wanted to know...what's the practicallity of doing something like that.

Or was I watching a video of Freerunning/Tricking, not Parkour?

If there is some practical application of a backflip, can I have a link to a tutorial?

[Alex Melusky]

If a video is all parkour but one flip, does it become a free running video? Most flips people throw into videos are random ones for fun (unless it is a free running video). If there were only a couple flips throughout the video, then you shouldn't be worrying. After all, David Belle does flips, so they should have some merit.

On practicality: I have an amazing sense of air awareness now because I practice flips. If I mess up, I usually land on my feet or land in a way that doesn't hurt me.

[midnight46]

i know what u mean every time i type in parkour or watch jam videos on youtube its mostly people doing flips

[Ozzi]

Parkour - Freerunning - Art du duplacement

All disciplines dedicated to movement emphasizing on efficiency of performance.

While some may think flips are inefficient, they are another way to challenge ones body to be controlled even on situation where you find yourself up side down. just like mentioned above.

Once you one become proficient with regular type training, its only another way to find a new method to challenge your skills. Flips do that very well with body and mind (fears)

[Alec Furtado]

Physically: Flips are fantastic for developing air awareness and pursuing the limits of your own movement.

Mentally: The incredible focus and control that flips require in combination with breaking through the mental barriers to do them (which most have at some point) can really complete your ability as a traceur.

Socially : You don't have to explain to people that you don't do flips when they discover that you train parkour.

Emotionally: The are very freeing and great fun.

Financially: I've made $2 so far though my "Backflip = $1" t-shirt (purchased from Ryan Ford, though I still have 18 backflips to break even).

[Kyle M.]

Physically: Flips are fantastic for developing air awareness and pursuing the limits of your own movement.

Mentally: The incredible focus and control that flips require in combination with breaking through the mental barriers to do them (which most have at some point) can really complete your ability as a traceur.

Socially : You don't have to explain to people that you don't do flips when they discover that you train parkour.

Emotionally: The are very freeing and great fun.

Financially: I've made $2 so far though my "Backflip = $1" t-shirt (purchased from Ryan Ford, though I still have 18 backflips to break even).

YES! 

[DaveS]

Sometimes it can be useful to divide Parkour into two aspects. There is the exploration part, and the achieving part. When you are exploring you care mostly about new experiences because that's the only thing that helps you learn. When you are achieving you care mostly about fundamental abilities, because that's the part that helps you get better at other things.

Practising flips and 'non-efficient movement' can be useful for many people as part of an exploration of what is possible through practicing movement. They are a way of giving yourself an opportunity for limitless creativity, letting you concentrate on the 'new' rather than on the 'necessary'. There are other ways of approaching this, but this type of training is essential in ensuring your training as a whole is effective.
However, the price for removing limits is that you don't get practice maintaining the focus necessary for working with situations that have limits. Every real situation has limits of some kind, and so this type of training is also an essential part for your training as a whole to be effective.

Practically speaking, you're going to need to spend time being creative and also spend time being focused. You get to choose how much of each

[Macgyver 0.]

thats free-running then.  I have to agree with you though, I never understood flips...

[MThomasfreerun]

thats free-running then.  I have to agree with you though, I never understood flips...

Careful - the distinction is of major debate (all-too-often I'm sad to say).

As for the usefulness and efficiency of flips, here's an example: Let's say you have a rail or wall that's about neck-high to clear and a gap below as well, and the landing surface is lower than the take-off surface, to the point that a dive roll would be imprudent. A running front may be the most efficient way to clear that obstacle without injury or slowing down significantly. It's very dependent on your abilities, the situation, the necessity of speed, etc.

[aarontp]

That makes sense, the whole: "to challenge yourself thing", like in Martial Arts, when you master the basics, they give you new forms that hurt like hell. Thanks. Though I won't be doing a backflip any time soon lol   

[Alex Melusky]

Careful - the distinction is of major debate (all-too-often I'm sad to say).

As for the usefulness and efficiency of flips, here's an example: Let's say you have a rail or wall that's about neck-high to clear and a gap below as well, and the landing surface is lower than the take-off surface, to the point that a dive roll would be imprudent. A running front may be the most efficient way to clear that obstacle without injury or slowing down significantly. It's very dependent on your abilities, the situation, the necessity of speed, etc.

To go along with this: You can also get more distance from a front flip than you can from just jumping. You can dive out farther in a flip, and the flip itself gives more distance. If there is a long gap and the only way to reach it was through this technique, it would be better to at least know it before learning it on the spot.

[FrostySTL]

To go along with this: You can also get more distance from a front flip than you can from just jumping. You can dive out farther in a flip, and the flip itself gives more distance.

Ummm, huh? I know I'm kinda new to this, and can't do a flip, but this makes no sense. It sounds like you are saying I can jump over larger gaps if I do a front flip across them, instead of just jumping.

[Alex Melusky]

To go along with this: You can also get more distance from a front flip than you can from just jumping. You can dive out farther in a flip, and the flip itself gives more distance.

Ummm, huh? I know I'm kinda new to this, and can't do a flip, but this makes no sense. It sounds like you are saying I can jump over larger gaps if I do a front flip across them, instead of just jumping.

Not necessarily gaps, but you you get more distance. When you just jump, your feet or pointed to the ground . With the flip, your head will be where your feet usually are. To land, you rotate back to your feet, giving you that extra bit of distance.

[Dom Rocco]

Here's an under-discussed topic

[Tex__]

its a really interesting topic too. 

[Dom Rocco]

its a really interesting topic too. 

Well to each his own but reading the same exact arguments worded 100 different ways is not something I find particularly interesting and this goes on multiple times per week, if not daily
What new ground do you expect to turn up in this thread?
Will this finally be the thread that ends the discussion and gives everyone involved the closure they need to move on from this tired discussion because someone interjects something new that everybody agrees with?
Probably not

[aarontp]

@Dam (or Dom...), the problem with people like me is we come into something, and try to figure things out like they are lol. Every time a novice enters something, he'll have questions. I had questions that my Martial Arts instructors heard a thousand times-there's no foolproof way to prevent questions from being asked again.

[Dom Rocco]

How many times is the reply to a subject just "something something search function"?
Seems like there's a double standard if that can't be applied here too
I just wanted to come in and make a smart ass comment, I'm going to go read something else now

[Tex__]

@Dam (or Dom...), the problem with people like me is we come into something, and try to figure things out like they are lol. Every time a novice enters something, he'll have questions. I had questions that my Martial Arts instructors heard a thousand times-there's no foolproof way to prevent questions from being asked again.

btw for future reference, the search bar will help with a lot of beginner questions.
and welcome to the forums.

[Dan Elric]

Parkour actually has very little practical application... 99% of what you'll be doing in a real situation is running.

It's all f#cking movement.